The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of the Internet

There is a lot of good to the internet. Some of the greatest aspects to the internet is that people can do research on "embarrassing" topics to seek help for themselves, whether it be physical or mental. The link I posted is about how to lose weight the healthy way. Websites like these are great because some people may not want to admit that they are embarrassed by their weight and are insecure with their bodies, so this website allows them to do some research on how to lose weight, without developing an eating disorder or going about losing weight a very unhealthy way. People may also do research on the internet regarding alcohol abuse, depression and anxiety, and possibly even disorders such as ADD, ADHD or OCD. Overall, the internet allows for people to take the first step of getting help by becoming informed, but the internet allows them to do it anonymously which is exactly what some people need.
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/health_advice/facts/loseweight.htm

Next, is the bad of the internet. I chose Facebook as my link of the bad of the internet. Although Facebook is great for keeping in touch with friends you cannot see often and  people all around the world, it is causing our generation to become more and more insecure to the point where I think Facebook should not exist anymore. Because of Facebook, people cannot go out on a Friday night and just have fun with friends. Instead, they have to take multiple pictures and post them to Facebook that night so everyone knows that they are at a party and having fun that night. Twitter is the same way, except it more so allows people to post random comments or thoughts, so therefore people will post some funny quote or inside joke and tag others in the post to make it evident to all that you indeed have an active social life. It is unfortunate, but it has been determined in a study that the more Facebook friends one has, the  more insecure that person is, and this is causing insecurities in way too many people because everyone strives to have a lot of friends on Facebook to look popular. Therefore, Facebook is truly a bad part of the internet and I wish it was never created in the first place because it is bringing out the worst in people.
http://www.facebook.com

Lastly, the internet is full of a lot of ugly aspects, but one is them is how easy it is to get in contact with pedophiles and creeps. For example, Chatroulette is a website where you can video chat random strangers. Although this idea to me is a weird to begin with, one might think it is fine, maybe just a little bit awkward, but it would be entertaining. However, when you go on this site you realize how ugly the internet can be. Almost everyone on Chatroulette is looking for sex, and some are naked on their webcam. Chatroulette is basically a form of pornography, although it was not initially created with this intention. However, this one website shows how disgusting the internet (and people on the internet) can be.
http://chatroulette.com/

Cell phones and privacy

I think prepaid phones are still a really great invention. I had a prepaid “go phone” when I was in middle school and it was perfect for me. Every text I sent or received was 5 cents and talking on the phone was even more money. It taught me to not be glued to my phone like kids are today at such a young age, and they are great in case there is an emergency and the kid needs to contact their parents or the parents need to contact their child. For this reason I think prepaid phones should not be banned. They are perfect for this age group, and that being said, I think if a 20 or 30 year old is interested in a prepaid phone then maybe that person should be looked into because it is possible that person is a criminal. Or, I also think it would be a good idea to register all prepaid phones unless a mother or father could prove (perhaps with their license and the child’s birth certificate) that they have a young child that needs a phone but for safety reasons they do not want it to be registered. 

Location Tracking

I think it is a horrible idea to implant computer chips into children, or any human no matter the age (unless they can agree to it). First of all, animals are much different than humans. If you implant a computer chip into a pet or farm animal, they will live their entire life not knowing this. Children on the other hand may not know for the beginning years of their lives, but once they reach a certain age it is their right to know. However, by the time they are told about the computer chip, it may be impossible to remove it, or maybe the computer chip has already created serious health risks for that child, or the removal of the chip is too risky to even attempt. I think it is an extreme invasion of privacy and I understand that parents of young children do not want to lose their child, but I think the parents should not rely on technology but rather put extra effort into parenting. Even though the parents technically by law have the right to implant the chip when their children are under 18, I think when the child grows up and realizes what his or her parents have done, he or she will lose a lot of respect for the parents and possibly even feel violated and lose complete trust in the parents. I do not think parents have the right to implant a chip into a teenager however, because the teen will be completely aware of what is going on and he or she will feel like his or her every move is being watched and this will create a hateful relationship between the teen and parents. Not to mention, teenagers are smarter than young children so if teens get lost, somehow they will find a way back home. So, ultimately the chip would be mostly for the parents to spy and that should not be allowed. If there was a bill in Congress that required ID chips in children under the age of five I would not support it. I think psychologically this will negatively affect the children in the long run and I am also not convinced that this chip is 100% safe for the body. Yet, I think this is not a horrible idea for Alzheimer patients because if there are health risks that occur after many years, they sadly might not even live long enough to experience the health risks, but also they can agree to this or disagree. Plus, even if they forget that they agreed to it, if you asked them again they would probably agree again, and vice versa with disagreeing. 

This course is really going to help us college students be much more aware of the "bad and the ugly" of the internet. Right now, we only focus on the good everyday like Facebook, Twitter, Google, ect. We need to be educated on the negative aspects of the internet that shouldn't happen, but do happen, and invade our privacy or hack into our personal life creating danger for us naive college students.